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CASTING FOR SCALE MODELS

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For modellers there's a whole host of accessories on the market. What if you need more than just a one-off?

Video of SM9HT32F20Q

Format: Streaming Media

Duration: 6 minutes 10 seconds

You could go out & buy numerous packs of accessories or shell out for expensive after-market conversion parts. Alternatively, you could use our video tutorial as inspiration & get into mould making.

Casting your own replica parts is a great way to make numerous copies of a certain item. It could be a particular scratch-built master, or a certain spare part that you need in significant numbers. A good example could be the ammunition boxes seen in this film. As you'll see, casting using a rubber mould will give you the ability to make repeated copies.

It's not always as cost-effective as it may at first appear but in theory, once you have invested in the materials & made a mould, you can just keep on pouring more & more parts.

In this 5-minute video, we explore the basics of casting. We use T30 two-part silicone rubber & Lego blocks to create the mould & mould walls. For pouring, we used two-part Biresin G26 polyurethane resin to make the actual replica parts. All the supplies came from specialists Alec Tiranti Ltd.

As you'll see from the video, casting using silicone can be a fairly time-consuming & lengthy process, but it is well within the ability of many modellers. With time & practice, you'll be creating repeated production runs of that unique component or hard-to-find accessory. Just bear in mind that while the resin will happily sit on a shelf for years, silicone rubber has a short shelf life, so try to build several moulds at once, to maximise the investment before your rubber reaches the end of its service life.